There's no escaping redundancy news at the moment. As the dreaded 'R' word is discussed behind closed office doors nationwide, the debate about the planned increase in statutory redundancy pay has been more open.
From HR's perspective, anything that eases the aftermath of job cuts has to be a good thing, but with accusations that such actions to protect workers are misguided, could the increase, as critics say, actually force businesses to close?
Personnel Today's redundancy tracker highlights the latest job cuts - now hovering over the 118,000 mark. And with more companies moving to freeze pay, are they misleading employees and just prolonging the inevitable, as one lawyer suggests?
Employers have their work cut out managing expectations and convincing employees they are taking steps to save jobs. The reality of selecting who will go is never easy, but using a matrix-based approach to redundancy choices can demonstrate fairness and dramatically influence how well job cuts are accepted.
To avoid feeling like a 'mopping up service', HR needs to strike a balance by focusing on the long term, as well as short-term survival.
Assertions that HR generalist roles are set for a comeback suggest that brushing up on your broad HR skills would be wise. HR people need to get their hands dirty with day-to-day work - it's not rocket science that staying flexible will stand you in good stead.
